Indian Medical Association supports pre-natal sex determination

Coming out in support of Union minister for women and child development Maneka Gandhi’s suggestion that a 20-year-old ban on pre-natal sex determination be lifted, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) said that sex determination test on foetus could be made mandatory.

Recently, Ms Gandhi had suggested that if each pregnancy could be registered and the sex of the foetus be made known to the parents, and if the same happened to be a female, the delivery should be tracked and recorded.

“However, there is no formal proposal being considered by the ministry on this issue at this stage and this is a suggestion that needs to be debated,” the doctors’ body said in a statement on Saturday.

The IMA said it supports this viewpoint as the data proves that India has an abysmal record when it comes to reining in the cases of female foeticide.

Citing data, the IMA claimed that India is among the countries with the worst child sex ratios in the world. The 2011 Census showed that the child sex ratio has dipped from 927 girls in 2001 to 919 girls in 2011. Child sex ratio shows the number of girls per 1,000 boys between the ages 0-6.

“Since, the PCPNDT Act, the sex ratio in the country has not changed. The government should form working group of ministry of health and family welfare, women and child development ministry, IMA, FOGSI and Indian Radiological and Imaging Association (IRIA). These bodies should deliberate together on this and work out implementation of the guidelines,” Dr K.K. Aggarwal, IMA secretary general, said.

The association further said that latest census numbers also cast a shadow on the adequacy of measures, which are helping in educating people to not prefer sons over daughters.

Reports said that with 919 girls per 1,000 boys, child sex ration in India has reached its lowest levels since 1961.